Family Affairs Ch. 19

Matt walked into the Forrester house ahead of Mary, so he saw the note on the kitchen counter before she did. He picked it up, saw Mr. Forrester's signature and, even though he knew he shouldn't read it, he did. And, as he read it, he experienced a combination of elation and fear.

"Mary,

I tried getting you on the phone all day, then I came home and you weren't here. I don't know where the hell you were, but the fact that you weren't here did give me time to think. Maybe you're right, maybe there are problems in our marriage, but they sure as hell don't all lie with me. I'm moving out. For how long is pretty much up to you. You want to talk to me, you can call me the office tomorrow.

Tom"

Matt handed the note to Mary. "You better read this," he said.

"What is it?" Mary asked. She took the note and began to read, licking her lips absently as she did. When she finished reading it, she looked at Matt. "Did you read this?"

He nodded.

"What do you think I should do?" she asked.

Matt shrugged.

Mary moved against him, hugged him tightly, then kissed him softly on the cheek. "It's over," she said, "My marriage, I mean. I...I'm not going to let Tom come back. That would only mean going through more hell, and I know the end result would be divorce anyhow. I really believe there's nothing left for Tom and me."

When he heard Mary's words, Matt felt light-headed. He hugged her so hard she gasped.

Ricky got home about five and was more than happy to go out for pizza.

"Practice was really a bitch!" he complained as the three of them walked out to Matt's truck. "The way coach has been acting, you'd think we lost all our games instead of won them."

Once they were in the truck, they headed downtown for one of the popular pizza houses. As Matt drove, Mary let her hand drop on his thigh and caressed it gently. He liked that a lot. They were almost finished with their meal when Matt noticed that Mary's face was serious.

"Ricky, there's something you need to know," she said.

"Why so serious, Mom?" her son asked.

Mary handed him the note. Ricky read it, and his face got very pale.

"Mom, what...what's this all about?" he asked.

"Ricky, you know your father and I haven't been getting along for some time," Mary explained. "In fact, you were commenting on how he's never home the other night, remember?"

"But...but he says it's partly your fault!" Ricky protested. "You gotta call him and try to work it out. You gotta!"

Mary shook her head. "I don't 'gotta,' and I've decided I'm not going to. I agree that when a relationship has problems, both people share the blame. I did offer to talk things out the other night, to try and come to some agreement to working on the problems in our marriage, but all your father did was get angry and stomp out. Ricky, what's happened between your father and me is much more complicated than his note makes it sound, and the problems in our marriage are, I really believe, too deep and too many to fix."

"But Mom, if you and Dad split up, what am I going to do?" Ricky asked. He was near tears and his voice cracked a little as he asked the question.

Mary looked at her son then she patted him on the arm. "You'll adapt, I think," she said. "After all, you're going away to school in the fall, anyhow. And it isn't as if you will never see your father again. I doubt very much if he'll leave the area, even if we...we divorce."

"I...I don't know," Ricky said. "It's weird." He shrugged. "I know lots of kids whose folks are divorced, but I guess, well, I guess I never thought it...it could happen to me."

The drive back to the Forrester house was quiet and tense. Each occupant of the pickup was lost in thought for a different reason. Ricky was speculating what his life would be like if his parents divorced. Mary wondered once more if, in reality, she was making the right decision. Matt was still fearful that, perhaps, he might be partly responsible for the termination of Mary's marriage.

"I'm going to bed," Ricky said the minute they got in the house. He ran upstairs.

Mary looked at Matt, her eyes red and said, "I...I had to tell him."

Matt nodded.

"I know he's upset, but I'm sure he'll adjust," she said.

"This...this isn't my fault, is it?" Matt asked softly.

"God, no, Matt!" Mary exclaimed. "You have nothing to do with it."

The phone rang. Mary walked over and answered it.

"Yes," she said, "He's here. No. He's been no problem. Goodness, no. I was glad I could help out. I wish you'd asked me before you left. You want to talk with him?" She gestured to Matt. "It's your parents."

Matt took the phone and heard his mother's voice. His grandmother was doing much better. She was going to have to enter a nursing home, but she was fine, and it looked as if she'd stay that way for some time. She said told him she and his father would be flying home in the morning.

"They're coming home tomorrow," Matt told Mary after he finished the call. "I'll be glad to see them, but I'm going to miss being here. And...I hate leaving you alone to deal with all this mess."

"Don't worry," Mary said. "I can manage. I got into this marriage on my own, I'll get out of it the same way."

They went upstairs to their respective rooms.

Matt slipped into a pair of pajamas, then he went into the bathroom and brushed his teeth. The door to the master bedroom was slightly ajar, so he couldn't resist peeking into Mary's bedroom. She was slipping a nightgown on and, as he watched, she dropped it over her head and let it slide down over her nude body. Matt swallowed hard. Watching the garment slide down over her loveliness made his groin tighten. He pushed the door open silently and stepped into the room.

"I already locked my door," Matt said. He walked over and locked Mary's. "Now yours is locked, too." He turned, moved to her, and pulled her into his arms. "Besides, Rick's probably sound asleep. We won't be disturbed." He covered her mouth with his.

Mary leaned back and looked at him, her face flushed, when the kiss ended. "Matt, we shouldn't be..." she murmured.

The young man reached into the scooped neck of her nightgown, cupped a firm breast, and began to rub his thumb over an already-erect nipple. "You sure about that?" he asked.

"Oh!" Mary groaned. She felt her legs growing rubbery. "Come on." She took his hand and led him to the bed, then turned and went into his arms again. They kissed, tongues lashing, sparks of passion flying between them.

When the second kiss ended, Matt helped Mary slip out of her nightgown, then he got out of his pajamas and, locked in each other's arms, they fell onto the bed. His hands commenced roving over her fulsome curves, inflaming her, drawing soft groans of delight from her.

"I'm getting spoiled," Mary thought, "I haven't been loved this often, or this well, for ages."

Matt rolled atop her and his rigid shaft slid between her legs and right into her torrid, humid opening as if it had been guided by an invisible hand.

"Oh!" Mary groaned, "Yes! Do it, lover! Do it!"

Matt began to move his hips, each movement thrilling them more. He felt Mrs. Forrester's hips rising to meet his thrusts. Matt might have started late in the field of sex, but he was learning fast.

Matt's throbbing shaft continued pistoned in and out of her, each stroke feeling more fantastic than the last. Finally, he felt his eruption begin. "Me...too! Oh, God, me, too!" he groaned as he spewed his seed into her.

Mary pulled his face down and covered his mouth with hers to muffle his groans. Her own orgasm had begun to ebb and, for the first time, she was able to fully enjoy the sensation of his warm juices splattering against her insides. It felt good, so incredibly good, that another tremor of bliss shook her.

Finally, Matt lay still, cushioned atop her, her breasts pushing into his chest. They lay like that, holding each other, for a time. Mary felt his erection soften and slip from her, then felt the tickle as their mixed juices seeped from her body.

"You better get back to your room," she said at last, kissing him again.

"Will we ever get the chance to spend a whole night together?" Matt asked.

"I'm sure we will, my love." Mary wanted to as badly as he did. They kissed again, then she watched him walk to his own room.

She pulled the covers up and turned out the light. "This bed feels very empty," she thought. "Even emptier than it did when Tom left. What am I going to do when Matt's folks get home? What am really I doing? Am I deluding myself and being foolish in thinking he and I might have a future?"